


No Matter When

by KibaSin



Series: Past Time [15]
Category: InuYasha - A Feudal Fairy Tale, Naruto, 幽☆遊☆白書 | YuYu Hakusho: Ghost Files
Genre: F/M, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-18
Updated: 2013-07-18
Packaged: 2017-12-20 14:08:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,937
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/888163
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KibaSin/pseuds/KibaSin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>They fought, and he was determined to win. However, he never expected years later to meet her once again, battling in the Dark Tournament. He learns something he never expected, right before she asked him to… to…</p>
            </blockquote>





	No Matter When

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any material belonging to the creators of Inuyasha, Yu Yu Hakusho or Naruto.

* * *

 

The distant roar of the crowd seemed to disappear as his sword clashed against the large blade the cloaked woman was using. He danced a dance long since written into time itself, one of bloodshed and death. The strange woman held her own, swinging the large blade around in order to counter his attacks, though it seemed that she shouldn't be able to do such a thing with such a heavy looking blade. With a single slash, however, he managed to catch the end of her cloak, the sound of it tearing lifting over the crowds shouting, hollering, bellowing, and roaring for more blood, death, and fear.

" _Oh! What's this?_ " came the annoying voice of the announcer. " _It seems that our masked fighter, Nanashi, will finally be revealed! Now, we all know from the last battle that Team Uzumaki that this mysterious fighter, this Nanashi, is a woman, but who is she really? Will we finally find out? I sure hope so!_ "

Yusuke, standing outside the ring, glared at the demon announcer. "Would you shut up for once!" he yelled, "I'm trying to hear what she's saying!"

The announcer cringed, stating, " _I'm only doing my job, sir_ " through the microphone she held within her clawed hand. She sighed, deciding that she'd merely tell them what was going on, perhaps cheer the crowd until they were chanting to see blood. That, after all, was what most of the demons there came for.

Two boys one the opposite side of the ring gritted their teeth, both leaning forward in order to see if their mysterious teammate had finally been revealed. They knew that she did not wish it, especially now that she was going up against the one that she hadn't wished to. She was the only one to not fight so far, and they were already tied. Whoever won this match who move on, the others would be removed from the tournament.

Hiei stopped for a moment, the woman having landed onto the ground, the remainder of her cloak still around her. Her eyes were covered, had been throughout the entire tournament, but her scent was familiar. Her large blade was tilted against the ring's surface, almost like she was ready to jump completely from the ground and swing it in order to make a circle where she'd once stood. That would do her no good, though.

She stood, the piece of her cloak that covered her face having been clipped by his sword. It had caught the piece that held the cloak together, thus it fell away when she finally lifted her head high, her dark blue eyes shining in the light of the day, yet looked cold as ice. Her lightly tanned skin almost seemed to perfect for her, hiding muscles that everyone knew was there. Her raven-black hair was tinted almost dark blue, while dark purple streaks had been dyed throughout the strands. The crowd went wild, noticing that this woman was another human, another dirty, filthy, human that shouldn't have made it that far within the tournament, especially since she was a woman.

The redhead standing next to him stilled, staring up at the unmasked woman. The announcer seemed to have noticed this, and came hoping toward them, obviously wondering whom the woman was. However, Yusuke frowned, wondering what was going through Kurama's mind at that moment. After all, Kurama had never taken an interest in any woman, so why would he be staring dumbly at that one?

Genkai, standing close by, moved to stand between them, enough room for her to fit. Her arms folded behind her back, her hands gripping her elbows as she turned her attention to the redhead known as Kurama. Her wise, old voice, finally said, "I take it you know that woman, Kurama?"

Kurama blinked, turning his attention toward the old woman beside him. He nodded a little, saying, "Yes. Her name is," suddenly there was a microphone stuffed underneath his nose, "Kagome. She's an… acquaintance of Hiei's. I have only met her once or twice, though."

The announcer did a little dance, a large grin suddenly spreading across her face. She was so happy that she'd gotten her information. Lifting the microphone, she said, " _You heard it from the horse's… oh, excuse me, fox's mouth, everyone. It would seem that our dear Nanashi is actually known as Kagome! It seems these two fighters have already met! Who knows, perhaps they were once lover—Ow!_ "

Yusuke scowled, finally fed up with the announcer. "Hiei hates humans." Within his hand he was tossing another rock, ready to let it loose. Kuwabara was shouting at the fact that he'd just hit a woman, but he didn't care. The announcer, Midori, had made a big deal out of the fact that he had lost his match to the brat on the Uzumaki team, some kid named Hakudoushi.

" _Oh…_ " the announcer blinked. She sighed, " _Oh, well. Well, perhaps they were once good friends! We never know._ " She grinned, turning to Yusuke, " _And you don't know either, sir!_ " Midori smirked, knowing she'd got him, especially when he looked confused.

"Hiei…"

She swung herself around, her arm wide, " _Who will be the winner of this final match? Who will manage to become victorious when these two are 'acquaintances'?_ " She pointed toward the two fighters, " _Perhaps this match will end soon, and we'll find out!_ "

A soft smile placed itself onto her lips, her head tilting so that she didn't have to look him in the eye, "…It's been a long time, Hiei." She grinned a little at her own foolishness, "But maybe that's only to me. You're a demon, after all."

A flash of confusion shot through his eyes, silently wondering why she'd hid herself. After all, she'd been an excellent fighter when he'd first met her, and it was clear that she'd managed to pass the level that she'd once been at. She was still as he remembered her, though her eyes were a little more tired than they had been back then, a strange emotions rushing throughout them when her blue eyes flickered toward him.

Her grin remained, "I see you're still as silent as ever. I don't think I've ever heard you say more than a few words." She took a glance back toward her team, watching as they all turned their faces, probably not wishing to know what she was thinking, or wanted permission for.

The crowd grew quiet, most of the demons within the stands wishing to hear what they were saying. There were occasional growls, some snarls, while they waited to see if the near emotionless fire demon would exchange words with a worthless human. He'd betrayed them by joining the humans he was with, but would he stoop so low as to talk with a human **female**?

He stood motionless, his mind whirling as he remembered the last time he'd seen her. The last time their swords had swung together, though her blade had been shorter and smaller than the one she held now. The look in her eyes, the strange look she had now, had formed then, and he could not help but wonder what it was. He, after all, could not search her mind in order to find out from the barriers that she placed around the information she did not wish for him to dabble in. Even now he could feel her barriers forcing him to stay out of her head as he tried to find a crack within them.

Genkai turned her eyes toward the ring, a knowing smile forming on her lips at the sight of the young woman's near silent actions.  _It would seem Hiei has found someone who wishes to understand him… perhaps love him. Hm,_  were her only thoughts, before she decided that she should not think these things while her mental barriers were down. After all, Hiei could easily hear them if he so wished when her barrier wasn't in place.

Kurama's eyes glittered, watching as Kagome swung her blade so that the flat edge was leaning on her shoulder, the sharpened edge easily flipped downward toward the ground if need be. However, he had a feeling that neither Kagome, nor Hiei wished to attack one another. After all, every time they fought, they never once struck for fatal blows, but merely to knock the others unconscious. Even if he knew Kagome would never love him, stating that he was too polite and kind for her tastes, he could not stop the jealousy that rose within his body as he watched the scene unfold before him.

**FLASHBACK**

Her foot pushed forward, trying to throw him off balance as he pushed back. Her pitiful human strength managed to last for only a few moments, until he finally pushed once more against her, causing her to stumble away from him. Her sword, however, was quick as lightning when he struck out toward her thigh, quickly deflecting his blade from its target, her feet regaining their stable balance.

It was almost strange to find such an excellent swordswoman within this age.

Her stance changed within moment, her sword suddenly against his neck, the tip pressing close to his skin. He didn't even flinch, instead glaring at her, as she said, "It seems you're distracted, Hiei."

"Hm."

Her sword lowered, a laugh falling from her lips, "Is that the only sound you know how to make?"

"Hm."

Her laugh became louder, more beautiful sounding. However, it annoyed him a little, causing his eye to twitch only a little bit. Without much effort, his sword found itself against her heart, his hand grabbing her right wrist, twisting it in order to make her drop her weapon. She flinched, but he did not care, as he smirked, "It seems that you're as well, foolish woman."

She grunted, "That's not fair, Hiei."

He remained silent.

Her eyes darkened, "But then again, life is not fair either, is it?"

He raised an eyebrow, never replying her simple question. However, deep within his mind he knew that life was not fair. It never was, and never would be.

**END FLASHBACK**

Kagome's smile did not remain solid, though. It almost seemed to flicker as she stared toward the demon, slightly shorter than herself, though she'd never call him short. It would hurt his pride. She knew that demons were very proud, and lived for certain things. She would be insulting him by calling him short, and she never wanted to do that. Never.

"BLOOD!" came a shout from the crowd. "GIVE US MORE BLOOD!"

Her smile vanished.

" _Oh, it seems that something very interesting is happening between these two! Perhaps remembering past events, wondering if it would be best to merely fall as one in a tie. But what fun would that be, right?_ " she listened to the sound of the crowd, roaring from her words. Ties were always so boring.

Her teammates turned away, each one of them knowing what was going on through her mind. It hurt to know that she was still thinking about that, still thinking about what had happened during the time that they'd received word from Hakudoushi about the tournament before joining.

"I did something terrible, you know," she whispered. She tried to smile, only to find that she couldn't. "That's the only reason I'm here. I-I wish to die."

He stiffened, "What?"

"I wish to die," she said more firmly. "That should be the punishment for the crime I committed." Her eyes were dull now, completely, staring off like she was seeing through him.

"Kagome," came a soft whisper from Kurama, and a few of the people on her own team. Kurama was confused, his green eyes flashing gold as he thought of Kagome dying. Apparently Youko thought the same thing, the fox having actually become attached to the young woman somehow. Why would she wish to die, though? It made no sense, especially when she was the purest person he'd ever known.

Hiei, normally quiet and cold, glared at her. "Crime?" he asked.

She glared back at him, her dull eyes brimming with fire within moment. "It is none of your concern."

He took a step forward, watching her blade swing until it was horizontal with the ground, pointing straight at him. "What crime have you committed, foolish woman?"

She glared harder.

"Now, wench!"

Her resolve shattered, her eyes suddenly flooding with tears. She looked away from him, her eyes once more becoming dull in appearance. Her form shook, her mind racing as she thought of what she had done. Horrible images flashed through her mind, her barrier falling for a moment in order to allow the fire demon to see them as well. There was an attack, what seemed like lightning, and the face of a young boy began ripping to pieces, falling apart like the person was decaying within seconds.

Tears streaked down her face, her blade falling from her grip as she began to sob. She'd killed her own brother with an attack that was meant for another, a demon that had attacked them. Her hands gripped her cheeks, trying to make herself stop crying, knowing that she was merely making herself looking worse in the eyes of the demons watching them. She was supposed to be an experienced fighter, but here she was, crying like a little girl who'd just lost her new puppy when a car had hit it. That wasn't funny, at all, since that had happened to her when she was little.

 _Hiei… the pain won't go away,_  she whispered, knowing that he heard her.  _I want it to go away. I-I-I… want… I want to… to find peace… Hiei… help me…_  Her eyes turned upward, his own words running through her head as she stumbled toward him.

Midori gasped, instantly bringing her microphone to her lips, " _What's this? It seems that Kagome, Nanashi, is giving herself to Team Urameshi's fighter, Hiei. She's opening herself for an attack! Surely she's not this suicidal, since we've all seen what Hiei can do!_ "

Hiei nodded only once, watching her move toward him. When she reached him, he allowed his eyes to close, his arm swinging only on instinct…

"Kagome!" shouted her teammates.

His heart hurt, watching her stumble toward him. He closed his eyes, only for them to snap open when he heard the sound of splattering blood, and something else he did not know how to explain, no matter how many times he heard it. Instantly, his eyes began changing to gold, Youko surging forth at the sight before them.

The crowd went wild once more! The roaring increased, each one of them cheering at the fact that the human had killed herself. Within moments they began fighting amongst themselves, never knowing the dying words that fluttered through her mind, nor the smile that she gave the fire demon was she sucked in her final breath, blood being coughed up from her throat.

Her smile was breathtaking, as she stared up at him, having fallen to her knees when his sword shot through her chest, directly into her heart. She only had moments to live, perhaps a bit longer, yet she still smiled, happy to know that she'd find peace at last. Hiei didn't understand it, nor did he understand the words,  _now… and then… forever… I… Hiei… I lo—I do…_  She slumped forward, her head resting against his stomach as she pulled his sword from her, her blood instantly flooding from the wound, and dripped off his blade.

Naruto, one of Kagome's teammates, stared at the sight with wide eyes. His hand clenched, the demon inside of him wishing that it hadn't have to be this way. But Kagome had said she wished to die at the hands of the male she loved, but she'd wanted to die in the final round, to prove to him that she was just as good as he was. They weren't even there! Tears escaped his eyes, and he turned to see Sasuke, Itachi, Hakudoushi, and Kagura allowed tears to flow as well.

Shock overcame him suddenly, and he knew that everyone was staring at him. He didn't know what it was, but something told him that he'd made both a grave and a wonderful decision. His blade fell from his hand, his arm coming around to hold the back of her head, keeping her lifeless body against him when she began to fall to the side.

Midori blinked in confusion. Her voice cracked, sadness overcoming her as she felt the feelings of those around her, " _The… the winner is Team Urameshi…_ " She only felt sicker after saying that.

Hiei breathed deeply, feeling the energy of Youko rise. He'd known that the fox had gotten close to the woman, but that wasn't what concerned him. What concerned him was the single tear that somehow managed to escape his eye. He didn't know what it was meant for, or even why he was nearly crying, but the place where his heart was ached. He could only wonder why. Especially after her words, mentally, though they were.

 _Now… and then… forever_ , echoed throughout his head. He could hear it over and over again, wondering what it meant. What she had meant by it. Was she truly trying to tell him something, or was she simply being the foolish woman he remembered her as once again? He wouldn't know, ever, but that still didn't stop the pain within his heart.

_\--Fin_


End file.
